DNR plans to pour 4,000 gallons of the chemical into Germantown ponds to kill intruders

[excerpted from the Journal-Sentinel]

Germantown - Louisiana red swamp crayfish lurking in a village pond will be drinking Wisconsin bleach this week in a continuing battle between the invasive species and state environmental officials.

Bleach poured into the storm-water pond and a smaller nearby pond should kill the rapidly reproducing intruders there, even as the state Department of Natural Resources prepares to take on a second infestation of the large crayfish in Wisconsin, said Randy Schumacher, DNR regional fisheries coordinator in Milwaukee.

The nuisance intruders were discovered recently in an urban fishing pond at Sam Poerio Park in Kenosha, and a fabric fence has been erected along the shoreline to prevent the aliens from crawling to other nearby water bodies, Schumacher said.

The DNR's first priority is eradicating the invasive crayfish in Germantown.

On Thursday or Friday, nearly 4,000 gallons of bleach will be poured into the Esquire Estates subdivision pond off Western Ave. to kill any of the Gulf Coast crayfish that have evaded traps, he said. The chemical will kill minnows and other aquatic life that might be in the pond, which is not a natural lake.

This invasive species of crayfish - much larger and more aggressive than native crayfish - was released illegally into the pond earlier this year, Schumacher said. The big crustaceans grow up to 8 inches long, and they would replace the locals quickly.

Investigators have not determined who released the aliens or why, Schumacher said. The crayfish might have been tossed into the pond by someone who ordered too many for a Cajun-style meal or purchased them for pets.

"No one should be releasing any animal outdoors without a permit from the DNR," he said.

State officials became aware of the Germantown infestation - the first time the species has been documented in Wisconsin - after subdivision residents reported the crayfish crawling over lawns in late August. Those residents say they had not seen the crayfish before July of this year.

More than 2,000 have been removed after they were captured in traps baited with beef liver, said Jamie Lambert, a DNR water resources specialist. Lambert and two other DNR workers removed 87 red swamp crayfish from traps on Thursday.

[to read the full article visit JSOnline.com]

WISN recently ran a report detailing the result of the effort.  To read that story click here.